Transportinfo.org.uk - today's transport news in the uk, hand picked for you each morning

Friday, 22 March 2024

BBC News

• Whitwick: Campaigners call for restoration of axed bus stopsA campaign has been launched to try to get axed bus routes restored through the centre of a Leicestershire village.
• Electric buses will be 'transformative' - councilThe Department for Transport has announced £5.7m of funding to support the rollout of electric buses across East Yorkshire.
• Rail service to be extended following landslipMore rail services have resumed, following a landslip earlier this month which closed the line between Shrewsbury and Birmingham.
• Dublin Airport operator car park purchase blockedDaa planned to buy a 6,000 space QuickPark site which is about a mile from the airport.
• Cycle lane has 'killed village', residents sayShopkeepers and residents claim a new cycle lane has decimated trade in a Rochdale village.
• Highland community concerned at loss of island linkResidents of Kilchoan rely on a car ferry connection with Mull for shops and services.

Department for Transport

• £143 million for better bus journeys as almost a thousand zero emission buses to hit the roadRural areas in England will be prioritised to receive new buses, which will improve the passenger experience.

Financial Times

• Boeing: how not to run a national championThe aircraft maker needs a deeper cultural overhaul, starting at the top
• Gatwick plans first shareholder dividend in five yearsUK’s second-largest airport expects passenger numbers to be back at pre-pandemic levels in 2025

STV

• Bus company freezes 'majority' of ticket prices in bid to grow servicesThe decision comes after First Glasgow's annual fare review with the price cap set to come into place from March 31.

The Independent

• 100% electric public transport from Bristol to London? Only the bus will get you thereCoaches are now ahead of trains in one crucial respect: all electric-travel between Bristol and London.
• Could Avanti West Coast really be nationalised over poor performance?Transport for the North passed a motion on Wednesday to urge the Transport Secretary to terminate the operator’s contract
• April rail strikes: how will train drivers’ walk-out hit passengers?One aim is to bring London to near-standstill on Monday 8 April, when the vast majority of Tube and commuter trains will be cancelled
• Voices: Better charging, cheaper electricity and bigger range - readers on what would convince them to buy an EVFrom a more robust charging network to batteries with bigger ranges and cheaper electricity rates - here's what you had to say

The Telegraph

• Labour ’will resurrect part of HS2 northern leg’. [subscription]Labour has privately indicated to the rail industry that it plans to resurrect part of the northern leg of HS2, Whitehall sources have told The Telegraph.

Times Online

• Drivers prefer buttons to ’distracting’ touchscreens, study finds. [subscription]Almost 90 per cent of motorists have safety concerns over screens as automotive safety body demands manufacturers use conventional controls

Local Government

• Local councils and bus operators welcome Government funding announcement for electric busesHull City Council, East Riding of Yorkshire Council, and the region’s two main bus operators, East Yorkshire Buses and Stagecoach have welcomed the Department for Transport’s funding announcement to support the rollout of electric buses in Hull and the East Riding.

Office of Rail and Road (ORR)

• Passenger rail usage October to December 2023A total of 417 million journeys were made by rail passengers in Great Britain in the latest quarter (1 October to 31 December 2023). This is a 20% increase on the 348 million journeys in the same quarter in the previous year (1 October to 31 December 2022). There were 1,570 million journeys in the year to 31 December 2023. This is a 20% increase on the 1,300 million journeys made in the previous 12 months (1 January to 31 December 2022).

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Rail passengers face 10 days of disruption at Huddersfield stationRAIL passengers are being warned to expect 10 days of disruption on a key route through West Yorkshire.

Daily Post (North Wales)

• Return of prodigal Ken to Welsh Government cabinet could spell new approach on roadsNew First Minister has unveiled the reshuffled ministerial team

London Evening Standard

• HS2 hails ’remarkable achievement’ as it completes excavation of longest tunnelA second machine reached the end of its 10-mile journey under the Chiltern Hills.

Manchester Evening News

• Andy Burnham announces Bee Network rail plans to be brought forwardAndy Burnham has announced that plans to bring rail services into the Bee Network have been brought forward. The Greater Manchester mayor said that eight train lines will be part of the new local transport network by 2028.
• M62 to be shut for TWO weekends amid plans to rebuild £20 million railway bridge The bridge in Castleton - which the country's electricity network relies on - is being replaced

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• Labour warns of 'major consequences' for North East amid concern over Hitachi rail plant jobsShadow transport secretary Louise Haigh has urged the Government to act now to safeguard hundreds of jobs at Hitachi's Newton Aycliffe factory, during a visit to the region on Thursday

Nottingham Evening Post

• East Midlands Railway announces £60 million upgrades including new seats and luggage racksClass 170 trains running across Nottinghamshire are among those being upgraded

Other Regional Press

• Daniel Laird named Go North East Head of CommercialGo North East has appointed Daniel Laird to become Head of Commercial as of 22 April.
• Nottinghamshire: Bus services among the best rated in the UKNottinghamshire and Nottingham have been recognised nationally as the top county and city in the UK for bus passenger satisfaction according to a major survey conducted by Transport Focus.
• Mark Francois and Huw Merriman discuss Wickford station rebuildAN MP has met with the rail minister to press for a derailed £4million overhaul of a train station to resume as soon as possible after a four-year saga.
• MP Rebecca Pow says Wellington rail project is ’progressing steadily’MP REBECCA Pow said that work is progressing steadily on the Wellington Rail station project.
• Bedford mayor blasts Borders EWR comparisonBedford’s mayor has blasted East West Rail after it claimed a new rail line in Scotland was an “outstanding example” of how railways can transform communities.
• 'Frustrating' notice for Botley Interchange work near OxfordAN Oxford MP said she was frustrated that drivers and residents have been given such short notice about the latest roadworks at the Botley interchange.
• Street car parking costs in Oxford city centre to increaseCar parking costs will increase in Oxford city centre next month amid concerns the project is a

Bus and Coach Buyer

• National Express reveals Van Hool AltanosAfter giving an initial glimpse of the first Van Hool overdecker for National Express, here is our deep-dive into the vehicle
• Scottish Citylink ups capacityStagecoach and ComfortDelGro joint venture, Scottish Citylink, is introducing more direct services and higher service frequency in its summer timetable.
• Passenger Charter promises consistency and qualityLincolnshire County Council and the county’s bus operators are introducing a Lincolnshire Bus Passenger Charter. The document is intended to help enhance and standardise bus services across the region.
• FlixBus expands again with new Manchester airport serviceFlixBus is launching a new Manchester airport for Stoke-on-Trent and Birmingham on 28 March, in time for Easter.
• National Coach Week launches on 8th AprilNational Coach Week, which runs from 8 to 12 April, will see the launch of RHA Coaches’ Manifesto for the Coach Industry – which will not only highlight the coach’s importance but appeal for positive changes to tackle its challenges.

Rail Business Daily

• EMR’s £60 million project to revamp regional fleet beginsEast Midlands Railway (EMR) has announced that a £60 million project to refurbish its fleet of Class 360, Class 158 and Class 170 trains has begun. The programme, which leverages significant private sector investment, is being delivered in partnership with Angel Trains, Siemens, Porterbrook, and Eversholt.
• ORR releases passenger rail usage statistics for Q3The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) has released its passenger rail usage statistics for Q3 (October – December 2023).

Railnews

• Passenger totals rise again The Office of Rail and Road has revealed that 417 million passenger journeys were made on National Rail during the last three months of 2023, which was an increase of 20 per cent when compared with the same quarter a year earlier. Revenue was also up, from �2.2 billion in the last quarter of 2022 to 2.6 billion in the same quarter last year.
• Government refuses call to nationalise Avanti West Coast The Government has rejected a call from the Board of Transport for the North to end the Avanti West Coast contract, which is owned by FirstGroup and Trenitalia. The two companies were granted a National Rail Contract for AWC which started last October and could run until 2032 after two periods of '˜probation' to allow performance problems to be resolved.

Railtech

• Hynes moves on, does Scotland’s railway move too?It was possibly the least surprising head-hunting move of the year. The Managing Director of Scotland’s Railway and Network Rail Scotland, Alex Hynes, has been appointed Director General for rail services at the Department for Transport. The UK government body was as near to delighted as a corporate entity can get, as it announced yesterday’s (Tuesday) appointment. One of the best-known names in the UK rail industry has taken up one of the highest-profile positions in the railway’s administration. Alex will join the DfT on a two-year secondment from his current position as managing director of Scotland’s Railway on 15 April 2024.

Railway Gazette

• Avanti West Coast won’t be nationalised, says MinisterUK: The government will not terminate Avanti West Coast’s operating contract, Rail Minister Huw Merriman has told the House of Commons.

Railway Technology

• UK ’Metro Mayors’ call on rail industry to create “golden era”UK regional leaders called for "culture change" in the rail industry at pre-election event.

Route One (Bus and Coach)

• Charging hub installed for Sheffield’s new electric busesA new electric charging hub has been created at Sheffield Interchange bus station to cater for four new BYD ADL Enviro200EV electric buses.
• Volvo BZR Electric coach and low-entry bus platform debutsVolvo has launched the BZR Electric platform to fulfil battery-electric requirements for high-floor coach and low-entry interurban bus deployment.
• Concern for small bus operators after West Yorkshire franchise moveSmaller operators in West Yorkshire have expressed concern after confirmation that franchising of bus services will go ahead in the mayoral region.
• Transdev unveils state-of-the-art green depot in YorkTransdev has inaugurated a new environmentally friendly bus depot designed to support local routes and City Sightseeing tours.
• Claims the South is losing out ’again’ after HS2 allocationBus services in the south should not be overlooked for funding, some in the industry have urged after the government detailed local transport authority (LTA) distributions for the Midlands and North of England from reallocated HS2 monies. 

The Business Desk

• Major investment to plug bus network into zero-emissions target£6.6m is to be invested in 74 electric buses and charging infrastructure as part of the response to the West of England Mayoral Combined Authority’s pledge for all of the region’s buses to be zero emission by the end of 2035.

Other News Sources

• Partnership to build micro-tunnel for HS2 power supplyUK Power Networks and Barhale have partnered to construct a micro-tunnel beneath the Grand Union Canal in West London, facilitating the delivery of 45MVA electricity supply for HS2
• Kim McGuinness plans to take back control with Angel network of busesNorth East Labour mayoral candidate Kim McGuinness has committed to taking back control of the bus network in order to give passengers a bigger say over fares, routes and timetables. The mayoral candidate was joined by Labour’s Shadow Transport Secretary Louise Haigh and Gateshead Council leader Martin Gannon, chair of the Joint Transport Committee, to set out an ambitious timetable for cheaper buses.
• Labour warns of 'major consequences' for North East amid concern over Hitachi rail plant jobsShadow transport secretary Louise Haigh has urged the Government to act now to safeguard hundreds of jobs at Hitachi's Newton Aycliffe factory, during a visit to the region on Thursday
• OFF THE RAILS: GBRTT’s Emily LightowlerIn this week’s ’Off the Rails’, I spoke to GBRTT’s Programme Director in Business Planning and Financial Planning, Emily Lightowler.
• Southampton: Hitachi Rail to acquire PerpetuumSouthampton-based condition monitoring specialist Perpetuum is to be acquired by Hitachi Rail as part of a strategy to strengthen the use of digital technology in rail operations.
• South East rail passengers on track to see Pay As You Go ticketing at 53 more stations across regionRail passengers across the South East are set to see an expansion of Pay As You Go ticketing as the contactless system will be rolled out to a further 53 stations in the region by the end of 2023.
• Minister opens rail investment at the port of SouthamptonThe Minister for Rail and HS2, Huw Merriman, officially opened the new Solent Rail Terminal marking the completion of the £17.5 million partnership investment between Associated British Ports (ABP) and Solent Stevedores.
• Transport Secretary says HS2 money could be used to reopen Lichfield to Burton rail lineFunding that could be used to reopen a railway line linking Lichfield and Burton has been made available, the Transport Secretary has said.
• Varamis Rail launches zero-emission freight service in LondonIn a bid to transform urban logistics, Varamis Rail has launched its new zero-emission freight service using high-speed electric trains to deliver goods into the UK’s capital.

News from Europe

• Greater Paris area to launch tests of 24-metre electric busIn the French capital region of Île-de-France, the first test drives are taking place with an electric double-articulated bus equipped with a floor-based conductive charging system from Alstom. The public transport authority Île-de-France Mobilités is planning to purchase an entire fleet of 24-metre-long electric buses.